Strolling around the Educause Exhibits, I happened into the Adobe booth and got an impromptu demonstration of Buzzword. A recent acquisition of the software giant, Buzzword is quite an impressive internet application.
Closest to Google Docs in its function, Buzzword breathes new life into the notion of what an internet application can be. With some really nice touches in layout and design, it is very easy to use (my four year old has picked up on how to use it). Though I haven't dugg too deep into the program, I think the only thing that seems to be missing is a set of hotkeys that can be used to control the program.
It would be interesting to see Adobe release its whole CS suite as internet apps to be used within any browser. Imagine doing your graphic or webdesign work from your iPhone. Oh the places you'll see:
I was really excited to find this tool to track views across multiple video sites. I love the fact that I can track videos from my YT account, but it is even more interesting to track stats across other accounts. The TubeMogul blog has some really interesting examples of how to track trends. They look at YouTube's YouChoose 08 (presidential candidates) to see who's stock is rising.
And it's about time. I can't believe it took this long for Google to allow users to search their reader subscriptions. I haven't really used it yet so I can't vouch for its function, but many a time have I lamented the lack of this feature.
Now if we could only get them to bring this same feature in the administration area of my YouTube account (more on that soon!)...
Chalk this one up to more innovation from Google and YouTube! I just realized that YouTube has released a fantastic new UI for it's embedded player.
To demonstrate I have embedded one of the funniest (and just plain not right) videos that I have seen on YouTube lately. If you are both a videogame nerd and a WWII history buff, this is your slice of heaven. (Subtitles are NSFW)
What's different? Click on the play button, then click on the menu button (lower right-hand of player). Once you click the menu button, the video shrinks to reveal a number of videos at the bottom and an (OSX like, no?) magnifying video dock with a number of icons for related videos. This feature has some amazing implications if YouTube will allow users to specify what videos populate this list (videos from playlists, videos from groups, videos based on search strings, etc)
Also, note the two buttons on the right of the shrunk video: one to get the embed code, and another to get the permalink. I think the previous player had something similar, but these seem more polished to me.
Lastly, click forward in the timeline and the video will start to re-download from the point that you clicked on. I am pretty sure this is a brand new feature and it is pretty awesome. I really hope that they can crank out some deep linking features now to allow users to specify clips within clips!
Being the good narcissist that I am, I searched for worthy adversary in Google this morning and came across these college student shirt-makers.
There's no relation between us, they've got too much style to be related. But I'm still hoping they send me a t-shirt (or at least a sticker!)!!! | del.icio.us it! |
This was a pretty amazing week for product announcements. With Microsoft, Apple, and Google all announcing major projects and Walt Mossberg's All Things D Executive Conference (Lollapalooza for nerds) there was excitement in the air and I found myself checking the calendar to be sure that this wasn't MacWorld/CES week.
In the interest of full disclosure, I am the co-manager of webcast.berkeley (we manage UC Berkeley's presence on iTunes U & Google Video). I was aware that an iTunes U section of the iTunes store was going to launch shortly before it happened. I had no idea that Apple would announce iTunes Plus or the ability to stream YouTube content to your Apple TV. These announcements have served to whet my appetite for WWDC. These seem like pretty big announcements and for them to be made only a week before Steve Jobs delivers the WWDC keynote leaves me thinking that there must be some pretty major announcements in store (See my predictions here).
In addition to all the Apple goodness that we witnessed earlier in the week, we also saw Google announce Google Maps StreetView. It is pretty radical, if a little big-brotherish. One of the first things our student employees found while using streetview was a colleague on her way back from lunch waiting for a light to change. I can't wait to see what the mash-up community does with this product. Check out the vid of this Googler in Spandex explaining the product:
Not to be outdone, Microsoft announced Surface. A coffee table sized computer that allows users to interact using a touch based UI. The first look the provided of the product showed off some pretty interesting UI interactions with images. I am curious to understand what MS thinks the target market for Surface is. I would question the value it will add to the client experience at a restaurant or hotel, which is apparently the only place that will have them until the are commercially launched. I am sure that casinos will buy a ton of these things, though.
Some of the features of the Surface are pretty compelling and I will be interested to see how MS incorporates bits and pieces into new products. I guess the strangest thing about the Surface is the ever increasing presence of the Redmond giant as a hardware manufacturer. Over the years Microsoft has made computer peripherals such as mice, keyboards, joysticks, and even a beta version of the recently announced Surface. But their hardware ventures have become increasingly ambitious starting with the success of the XBOX 360 (not mentioned in their hardware history timeline), now the Surface, and even Roundtable in the near future. I wonder if Microsoft hasn't learned something from Apple after all. Wonder what is next from these guys.
Just last week I was talking with my wife about the conundrum of how to view statistics on her RSS feeds. Here is the backstory:
I'd been hounding her for a while to syndicate the full content of her blog. Suffice it to say that I wanted more than to just get the gist of her posts in Google Reader. I wanted to read the full version of her posts right there, without waiting for the sluggish (IMHO) blogger page to load.
One day she tired of my whining and relented. A few days later she was frustrated by a substantial drop in page views for her blog. This is when we realized that analytics doesn't track views of your feeds.
Google must have recognized this same problem. They saw yet another ad sales opportunity in RSS feeds and have acquired Feedburner to get a leg up on the metrics end of RSS. With Feedburner & Analytics Google now has a formidable suite of statistical analysis tools.
But that isn't all this gives them. Google AdSense is a very well established (and lucrative) platform for online advertising and now that they have FeedBurner, they'll be able to inject ads into your feeds, track the viewership, and make money in the process.
Google has also been doing trials with Video AdSense and with both Google Video and YouTube in the fold, they have the content and platform for delivering media rich ads in spades.
All in all, purchasing Feedburner is just a great move for Google.
I am getting more and more excited about Steve Jobs Keynote at WWDC on Monday, June 11. This feeling takes me back to when I was a kid and presents started to accumulate under the tree in the weeks leading up to Christmas. I would do everything I could (short of actually unwrapping the presents, except once... sorry, mom) to divine the contents of the boxes and bags under the tree.
There are a lot of sites dedicated to this activity. Though a bit of an amateur at it, I have compiled my own short list of predictions for the keynote:
The Mac Mini - Thanks to MacRumor's awesome buyers guide, I didn't have to go to far to find out that it's been 269 days since the last update to this line. This is an eternity for an Apple product in the scheme of things and MacRumors.com is cautioning folks to keep the plastic in their pockets until the next product update... There have been a few rumors circulating about the line being discontinued and I really hope this isn't the case. So much so that I am going to let my emotions influence my analysis. Probable - Faster processors, bigger HDD, and more memory out of the box. Unlikely - Smaller form-factor, solid state flash based HDD (too expensive for the line) Crazy- The Mini will be positioned as an Apple TV + with true 1080P output, DVD playback (and ripping?), etc.
The iPhone - I believe the veil will be lifted on the iPhones OS and the Google-Apple relationship. We'll find out a lot more about what Google software, features, and services will be native to the iPhone. Apple will also announce a number of other third party developers and applications that will be available when the iPhone ships.
The MacBook/Pro - The MacBook/Pro will likely see a new smaller model (10-12"). They will also see processor bumps. The most exciting enhancement to the line will be Solid State Flash based HDD and OLED screens.
The touch contol fullscreen iPod - Though I have been hoping for a phoneless iPhone, I doubt the next iPod will be very fully featured. a phoneless iPhone with wi-fi capabilities would really cut into iPhone sales and I don't think Apple will do that. Though they are likely to let a few of the features trickle into the iPod line. I am guessing that a touch control iPod with a bigger screen will be released.
If all these predictions came true, there wouldn't be time for anything else. I welcome you to make alternate predictions (sound or insane) in the comments below. Also, obviously a huge cult of Steve exists and I am curious if anyone ever tailgates for a Steve-note?
In a bold move, the Redmond monolith introduced its iPhone killer, Surface. About the size of a coffee table, "Surface features a 30" tabletop display whose unique abilities allow several people to work independently or simultaneously. All without a mouse or keyboard" (microsoft.com).
While Surface won't fit in your pocket and isn't battery operated, Microsoft believes that one key feature will allow it to out-compete iPhone in the marketplace: Viewable Image Size.
Surface shares many features with the iPhone: the ability to check your email, look at maps, play music, view images, browse the web, and a touch sensitive user interface. The primary difference is that Surface allows you to do all this from the convenience of your living room (or T-Mobile store until winter 2007) while Apple allows its products to run rampant and isn't capable of setting these types of boundaries.
In the ever present race to make computers smaller and smaller, a leak out of Cupertino informs us that Apple will introduce the Mac Shuffle. Currently, Apple desktops on offer include the Mac Pro, iMac, and Mac Mini. The Mac Shuffle is a natural extension of Apple's current line of desktop computers.
About the size of an iPod, the Mac Shuffle will include a 40GB Solid State HDD, 1GB RAM, and a 1.66GhZ Core2 Duo processor.
Running a stripped down version of OSX Leopard, the Shuffle will have a power button, sleep button, and skip forward button. When you first start up your shuffle a random application will be started and you can use it or use the skip forward button to cycle through your applications in random order.
I am sure we will be hearing more about this as the product creeps closer to launch, but one thing you can bet on is that people will swear there is nothing random about the order in which applications are skipped through...
I returned from a conference on Video, Education, and Open Content at Columbia University in NYC yesterday. Some really amazing projects were presented, and there was a lot of stimulating conversation.
The following are my highlights from the conference:
Microsoft's Curtis Wong showed off an astronomy product sort of like Google Earth for the Universe under development at the Redmond software giant. The key difference is that the renderings are based on both a dataset and images.
Wong also showed off a tool called codescope used in an interactive CD-ROM on DaVinci's Codex Leicester. It's basically a really slick slideover window which seems to "peer through the document" to reveal an English translation.
There was a brief presentation by the senior VP of content strategy for Joost, an internet video (TV?) service developed by the creators of Skype. This product couldn't have come soon enough as I have been looking for a new way to clock-watch at work!
Good friend and former colleague Obadiah Greenberg presented on education and YouTube and the role it can (and will, knowing Obie) play for video in the .edu domain.
Throughout there was a lot of talk about archiving as well as IP and copyright issues...
Day 2
John Dehlin, director of MIT's OCW initiative talked about MIT's OCW initiative. It was a good presentation that ended with a suggestion that a video capture best practices "toolkit". I think Berkeley can do him one better than a toolkit with its open-source enterprise capture and delivery system currently under development...
UC Santa Cruz's Abram Stern presented on MetaVid a killer project that captures audio, video, close caption and ocr on-screen text from cable broadcasts of the house and senate. It has intense implications for making educational video more discoverable and search results more relevant and meaningful. Respect.
Colleague Judy Stern gave a great presentation on best practices for video in Teaching and Learning.
Colleague Mara Hancock rocked the house with a rousing call-to-arms for community and open-source development in education. She really seized the opportunity to evangelize for building an intelligently architected framework to develop within so various projects from the education community can be better leveraged to help each other and be more easily integrated into enterprise systems.
Dean Jansen from Participatory Culture Foundation (makers of the Democracy Player) & Colin Rhinesmith from the Berkman Center, Harvard Law School talked about Broadcast Machine an application you install on your website to easily publish video, audio, and images. These folks have a great concept and are just plain cool. I am really looking forward to further conversation and thinking about ways in which we might be able to incorporate the Broadcast Machine into our open source enterprise capture and delivery system.
Lastly, I had the opportunity to check out the various projects and products that CCNMTL has developed over the years. They are an inspired, educational, and forward thinking group and it shows in projects like Vital, Havel, and an amazing project that I can't seem to find online that aims to breakdown the barriers for educating couples where one of the two is HIV+ about the disease and how to prevent transmission to the uninfected partner.
The CCNMTL group was really terrific and I have to say that the event was killer. So killer, in fact, that it was jam packed and difficult to pick-up on everything that was put-down. Everything from registration, to AV support, to catering was first rate. The only change I'd suggest is a little more down-time so that folks could gather and communicate on a one-to-one basis about their projects and potential collaboration. I can't even begin to express how much I appreciate the opportunity to attend and participate. | del.icio.us it! |
Much to my chagrin, I haven't been writing a whole lot lately. But a friends recent foray into the blog-o-sphere has inspired me today and I wanted to welcome her!
Please check out Promptu for insight into education, technology, software development and more... | del.icio.us it! |
I must say, I am NOT a Peyton Manning fan. I am really looking forward to seeing him on his back staring up into the face-mask of Brian I-just-sacked-your-stupid-ass Urlacher. Despite that, I wasn't unhappy about the fact that someone was finally able to burst the bubble of Tom Brady by keeping him out of his fourth Super Bowl in six years.
But Tom Brady's team won't be the only Patriots missing the big game this year. The committee for stripping the most American of traditions from the most American of events (a.k.a. the Super Bowl XLI Host Committee) issued a statement to the public last Tuesday: Tailgating will not be allowed within one mile of dolphin stadium on game-day. According to this story fans spotted grilling or consuming alchohol may even be hauled off to the clink. While Floridians have traditionally used legislation to prevent folks from "hiding the sausage" in the sunshine state, it appears they will allow an exception so the NFL doesn't have to see your sausage on a hibachi near the stadium.
Not for nothing, this prohibition on American activities near the stadium must have been intended to protect. Perhaps to protect spectators, perhaps not. The Super Bowl is a huge event, not just for Americans, but for the American economy too. I don't know what kind of an economic impact a disruption of the big game would have, but television advertisements alone were sold for $5-5.2 million dollars per minute during the 2006 Super Bowl.
There is no question that protecting this event is important. But how much protection do I need? A few years ago, Justin Timberlake ripped part of Janet Jackson's "wardrobe" off during the Super Bowl half-time show. Since this incident (and the record fine dealt to Viacom) networks have set most live broadcasts on a 5-10 second delay so as not to transmit another accidental areola (which was fully covered, upon really close inspection).
At the end of the day, grilling sausages and drinking beers at the stadium is more patriotic than... well... the Patriot Act. And nipple-slips and f**k da eagles t-shirts can't be more harmful to us than ghostwhisperer, can they? I am dubious about whether banning tailgating on Super Sunday will keep anyone safer. So, the question is are the risks so high as to justify the police-state mentality and censorship we are seeing? | del.icio.us it! |
Strolling around the Educause Exhibits, I happened into the Adobe booth and got an impromptu demonstration of Buzzword. A recent acquisition of the software giant, Buzzword is quite an impressive internet application.
